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QMI Agency

San Jose Sharks defenceman Dan Boyle said he believes a small group of owners is calling the shots during the NHL lockout and that a majority would be open to the players' proposal.

"I think when players make comments, sometimes it's directed toward 30 owners, but I think a lot of us feel that it's not across the board," Boyle told CSNBayArea.com.

"It's a certain group of teams that are controlling 30 others. It doesn't make any sense to me that eight teams can control the fate of 22 other ones."

Boyle said he doesn't anticipate much movement for a couple of months.

"I know that's very pessimistic of me, and I really hope I'm wrong. But the eight guys ... what if there are 22 teams out there that want to play right now? How do eight teams control their fate? That bothers me the most."

DAVIDSON OUT AS BLUES' PREZ

The St. Louis Blues confirmed Friday that John Davidson was out as team president.

Davidson, 59, had three years left on a four-year contract, but there has been speculation since last May that he would not be back for a seventh year with the team.

When Tom Stillman was approved as the new Blues owner in May, the writing was on the wall for Davidson. Stillman, previously a minority owner, and Davidson reportedly did not have a good relationship. Davidson used a 30-day window in his contract to pursue a job opportunity with the Blue Jackets in late May, the Columbus Dispatch reported.

"We would like to thank J.D. for his commitment and dedication to the Blues organization over the past six seasons," Blues chairman Stillman said in a statement.

BRIEFLY

Philadelphia Flyers winger Matt Read, 26, is expected to make his debut Saturday with Sodertalje, a team in the Swedish second division. New York Rangers winger Carl Hagelin, 24, also is with Sodertalje, which is where he was born ... San Jose Sharks goalie Antti Niemi has signed a one-month contract to play for the Lahti Pelicans of the Finnish league. Niemi, 29, played for the Pelicans before joining the Chicago Blackhawks during the 2008-09 season.